"It’s interesting because Liverpool were in the same situation as Arsenal towards the end of my career when you’re just missing out on the top-four," Jamie Carragher said on Sky Sports when asked about Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang.
"It’s okay to have rules like 'we never let a player go on a Bosman ruling', but if you’re Mikel Arteta, have you got more chance of getting back in the Champions League if he stays?
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"That’s the decision they have to make. At this stage, there’s no doubt that Aubameyang is too good for Arsenal. We had that at Liverpool with Luis Suarez and certain other players.
"You’re desperate to keep hold of them because you want to build around those players. If they go you feel like you’re starting all over again.
"That will be a decision for them. It’s okay saying 'if he doesn’t want to be there, let him go'. But it’s not as easy when you’re at that club and you have a player of such star quality who will be there or thereabouts for the Golden Boot every year.
"It’s not easy to find goalscorers so I’d keep Aubameyang and see what you can do, see if you can bring players in around him and hopefully have a successful season and convince him to stay over the next 12 months.
"If not, it still gives Arsenal a greater chance of getting back in the top-four and that’s where they need to be."
Since joining us in January 2018, the Gabonese has scored 61 goals in 97 appearances, establishing himself as one of the most lethal strikers in Europe.
This Premier League season alone, the 30-year-old has scored 17 goals, which is almost half of all goals that the team managed this term so far (40 goals in 28 games).
Naturally, losing Aubameyang would add more problems to struggling Gunners and possibly lead to a further decline. So, the board have a huge dilemma on hands, which requires addressing as soon as possible as time plays against Arsenal with Auba's contract expiring in a year.
